The Boy on Fire
by RandomPairingsWitch
Summary: Madge Undersee watches as her friend volunteers to go into the Hunger Games, and subsequently dies. Cato, the tribute from District Two, emerges victorious- but only reluctantly. With the Girl on Fire dead, there is only one person with enough power over the public mind to begin a rebellion, and he might be the only hope for them to succeed.


**Pairing: Cato x Madge**

**Fandom: The Hunger Games**

**A/N: This is a totally strange pairing that I am completely in love with at the moment and I don't know why. There is not an awful lot of fanfiction about them, so here is my shot at it. I know I have two other stories to complete, but I am just really in love with Madge at the moment. And Clara Oswald.**

"Primrose Everdeen!"

The name rings out, loud and clear, through the silent square. It takes a second for her to process whose name it is, but when she does, Madge feels like she's been punched in the gut. Not Prim, little Prim, who smiles and greets everyone in the streets. Whose life has only just started. And then she thinks of Katniss, Madge's only friend, and the thinks, for a second, that she'll do it; she'll volunteer.

It's best if she does, she decides. No one will miss her like they will miss Prim, and if she doesn't, then Katniss probably will and she can't let her do that. Prim and Mrs Everdeen would never survive alone.

"I volunteer! I volunteer as tribute!"

Madge is nearly sick, because she recognises the voice, and it is not her own. She watches, her face crumpled with worry, as Katniss Everdeen mounts the stage and announces to the whole of Panem who she is.

When Peeta Mellark is reaped, Madge feels like she's been shot multiple times. Peeta used to be her friend, when she was younger, and whenever they see each other, they exchange pleasantries and laugh at each others' jokes.

Now two of her friends are going to fight to the death, and there's absolutely nothing she can do about it.

Madge feels her leg jigging up and down as she sits and waits to see Katniss. Her fingers fumble with the golden Mockingjay pin on her pristine dress and she formulates, carefully, in her head what could potentially be her last words to Katniss.

It doesn't go according to plan, of course, because the words disappear from her head as soon as she enters the room. She just remembers pushing the pin into the other girl's hands and ordering her to wear it as a token. The next thing she knows, Madge is stood outside the back door of her house and she is crying really hard.

After a few minutes- maybe hours, but who's counting?- Madge picks herself up and walks into her house, pulling on a warmer coat and thick boots and filling a bag full of food and money. She's running out of her house into the dark, and she's about to lift her hand to knock on the Everdeen's door, when she hears a loud voice from the inside that she recognises as Gale Hawthorne. Panicking, she drops the bag quietly onto the doorstep and takes off back into the night.

The following days are hectic. All she properly remembers is standing in the square and laughing with elation at Twelve's tribute parade, and then gasping in horror as Peeta professes his love for Katniss. She takes rations of food to the Everdeen's everyday, making sure she cannot be seen, and for every day she does it, she feels more and more hope that maybe- just maybe- Katniss can come out alive.

All her hopes disappear when Katniss joins with Peeta. Madge knows immediately that Katniss will have to play up the love story for the Capitol to keep them both alive, and she also knows that Peeta will be her downfall. Katniss will not let Peeta die, and so probably will kill herself for him.

Surprisingly, they get down to the final three, after Cato murders Thresh and then is chased off by a pack of mutts. And there is a promise of two Victors, but Madge knows the Capitol- or rather, President Snow- and she knows that there is no way that will be allowed to happen.

The final show down is quick and simple. Cato attacks Peeta and breaks his neck in one fell swoop. Katniss takes a second to process what has happened, and that is the mistake she makes. In that second, a lot of things happen.

Madge hears Prim and Mrs Everdeen and Gale scream in one corner, and she thinks her screams are there, too. Madge can feel herself getting woozy and she knows that she'll collapse soon, but she can't not know the ending. She watches, with her stomach in her throat and her hands on the wall for support, as a mutt launches itself from the undergrowth and rips Katniss to shreds. The last thing she sees before she blacks out is Cato's horrified face as he lets go of Peeta's body and stares at Katniss as she is literally torn apart.

She wakes up in the Everdeen house, laying in a small bed she immediately realises must have belonged to Katniss, and she scrambles out of it so fast she falls to the floor with a thud. Mrs Everdeen comes rushing in at the noise, and helps her to her feet.

"I'm sorry," Madge cries, tears blurring her vision. "I'm sorry."

Mrs Everdeen holds her like she is her mother, and Madge cries even more. She hears the small door creak open and seees Prim enter cautiously, tears still falling from her eyes. The little girl crosses the room and joins in the hug, and Madge starts crying even harder, because Prim had just lost a sister, and yet she insists on comforting both her mother and Madge.

"Thank you for the food, dear," Mrs Everdeen says later, when they're all cried out and just sat at the small table.

Madge smiles a sad smile at them. "I couldn't let you starve."

"We both know Gale would never allow that to happen," Mrs Everdeen points out. "Or Mr Mellark, who Katniss told to help us."

Madge sighs. "I don't really know why I did it. I mean, obviously it was because I cared for you and I didn't want you to die, but I knew Gale would look after you. Maybe I just felt like I was helping Katniss, somehow."

Mrs Everdeen nods, but looks off into the distance. "I have to think about how we'll survive now. The only reason before was because of... well, you know."

Madge knows she's thinking about Katniss again, and so tries to change the subject slightly. "We're taking people on." At Mrs Everdeen's confused face, she elaborates. "At our house. We have job vacancies. I know it's not want you'd want to do, but my father pays well, and it can just be for a little while."

Mrs Everdeen looks like she is about to cry again. "You're very kind, thank you. I think I'll take you up on the offer."

Madge smiles and can forget, for a while, what happened in the Games.

It's time for the Victory Tour, and Madge doesn't think she's ever been less prepared for anything in her life.

As the Mayor's daughter, there's certain things she has to do for the Victor. In Twelve, it's the tradition that she presents the Victor with a bouquet of flowers to show her appreciation, which means she will have to associate with the man who killed Peeta. Then, there's always a ball in Twelve, as it's the last District before his home one, and she has to attend. That means two new dresses for the amount of money that a small family could live on for three months, and probably a dance with the man who killed her friends. She's had to for the last few Victors.

As the day of the Tour in Twelve drew nearer, Madge feels steadily more sick. Her dresses- one short, cute one for the stage and one long, shimmering one for the ball- are ready and waiting in her wardrobe. The flowers for Cato have arrived and are sat on the kitchen table.

And Effie Trinkett arrives a day early to make sure that everything is in order. She takes a special shine to Madge, especially when she finds out her and Katniss were friends, and helps her to say her lines and how exactly she should hand over the flowers. Madge likes Effie, even though she is a little to loud and pink, because she obviously feels some kind of regret for Katniss and Peeta. Once, Madge saw someone mention the name Katniss, and Effie had to excuse herself to go and cry.

It's getting better, Madge thinks. It must be, because Capitol people are upset about tributes dying, and not just because they were their favourites, but because they got to know them as real people.

Cato emerges onto the stage, and a few people cheer because it's mandatory, but a lot of people remain awkwardly silent. Madge herself only claps because it's polite and because they might find a way to punish her father if she doesn't. He doesn't look particularly victorious, as he did in the other Districts. Rather, he looks quite upset and sad, even in his vibrant suit.

Madge thinks he must have been told to look upset to make him a crowd favourite.

Then he really surprises her by sliding the cards he had held in his hands behin his back. "I am sorry," he begins. "For the terrible loss of your tributes. I admired Katniss for her strength and willingness to help others before herself. I admired Peeta for his strength to trick the Careers to keep Katniss safe. I admired them both, and was upset to be the person to kill one of them. I know apologies and nice words will not bring your tributes back," Madge could have sworn she saw his eyes flash to Prim. "But, if there had been any other way, I would have taken it in a heartbeat. I didn't want Katniss to die. I didn't want Peeta to die. I didn't want any of the tributes to die."

He leaves the stage then, rather abruptly, which makes Madge start and look to Effie for guidance. Effie shrugs, unsure for once, and Madge is upset, more than anything, that the money was wasted on a dress no one even saw, when there are starving families. There's a commotion afterwards, when someone does the sign that was done as a collective group of people when Katniss went into the Games. Someone else does it, too, then another person, until everyone- even Madge, she realises- has their hands raised in the air.

Then she feels someone grab her waist and pull her into the Justice Building. She sees it's Effie, who's looking around in worry.

"We need to get you away," Effie is babbling. "We need to get you somewhere safe."

"What-" Madge is trying to say, but is interrupted when Cato and his mentor come back into the room.

Cato looks straight at her and she looks straight back at him, and his mentor is rambling about something. Effie rushes over to calm him down, and Cato takes the opportunity to walk away. Madge finds herself running after him, she's not sure why, and yelling at him to stop. He does and turns, his hair that was once gelled to perfection in a glinting golden mess, and his suit loose.

"Did you mean it?" she finds herself demanding. "Did you mean what you said, about Katniss? About not wanting her to die?"

Cato gives a delirious laugh. "Why do you think they didn't let me have an interview. I wouldn't stop rambling about how I wanted to save her, so they didn't let me on air. Put it down to trauma, but they wouldn't let me on because they thought I would just talk about how much I wanted her to go home."

Madge finds herself almost crying again. "For Prim?" she guesses.

"Her sister?" Cato asks, and she nods. "Yes."

Madge smiles at him, then. "Thank you," she says, and then remembers he killed Peeta as well.

"She would never have killed Peeta," Cato says, as though reading her mind. "She would have wanted to go home with him, but Snow would never have let that happen."

Madge sighs. "I suppose."

Cato frowns and looks her up and down. "Who are you, anyway? Katniss's friend?"

"I'm the Mayor's daughter," she says, then remembers the flowers in her hands. "And these are for you."

Effie doesn't rush her away as she was going to before, although she still looks like she wants to. Instead, when she comes across her handing Cato the flowers, she smiles and whisks her away to get ready for the ball.

Her short, lacy pink dress is switched for a long, light blue floor-length gown. Her hair is taken out of its braided updo- courtesy of Mrs Everdeen- and curled and pinned back from her face. Her make-up is washed off and re-done. By the end of it, she looks glorious, but feels too much like she's supposed to be at Katniss's funeral to be truly happy. She just wants to cry.

Effie catches her eye as she descends into the room where the dancing is taking place and gives her a smile.

"You look beautiful," she greets. "I wish..." she sighs. "Nevermind. I think your father wanted a dance."

Madge smiles reassuringly and leaves to find her father, but is intercepted by Cato. He offers her a hand and she takes it, a little warily.

"If you don't want to dance..." Cato says, but she shakes her head.

"I'll dance with you."

They move to the floor and begin swaying to the music.

"You avoiding someone?" she asks as his eyes scan the room.

"The Capitol customers," he replies, looking down at her. "If you know what I mean."

Madge nods. She knows about the Victors, and how they're forced to sell their bodies after they win by President Snow. They continue swaying for a while, neither of them talking. They do it for a few songs, until there's a slight break for Cato to make a speech, and then he grabs her hand and takes her to the food table. She doesn't really know why she's sticking around with him. Maybe it's because he was nice about Katniss. Maybe it's because she has nothing else to do. Maybe it's because she feels sorry for him.

He offers her food and drink, but she refuses. She's never been a fan of eating the food at the parties, because she feels bad for the families in the Seam. He doesn't seem to mind, though, as he helps himself to loads of drink.

"I'm sorry to keep you," he apologises after a while. "I know there must be other people you want to dance with."

"I hope that was sarcasm," she comments, as her eyes pass over the people she usually dances with.

He raises an eyebrow. "You don't enjoy dancing with the Capitol men?"

"You mean the fifty-year-olds with the roaming hands?" she points out and he shrugs as though what she says is part of everyday life. "No thanks."

"I'll try not to get offended," a very high-pitched voice says from behind them and Madge cringes.

It's one of the old men from the Capitol she has to dance with every year, and tries to take her away at the end of every dance. He's a peacock, almost literally, with green and blue hair that stands on end and clothes that are too bright to look at.

Cato raises his eyebrows at him. The man approaches and sticks out his hand to introduce himself. Cato shakes it gingerly.

"I'm Andreaus," he greets. "From the Capitol, of course. I'm a big fan of your's. And of your's, of course, Miss Undersee," he adds on the end, as though he will offend her otherwise.

She shudders in repulsion.

"I think it's about time for our dance, wouldn't you say, Margaret?" he says as another song starts up.

"Actually," Cato cuts in, grabbing her arm. "I've already promised her the next dance."

"Thanks," she says as they begin dancing again.

"I think I owe you more than that," he comments, and Madge realises he's talking about Katniss, not her taking him away from his Capitol customers.

She stiffens at the thought of her friend. "I- I need... I need some air, I think," she sputters out as she walks away from him.

She manages to get to the back door and out onto her porch in time for her to collapse onto the swing. Her breathing is heavy and her head is light as she slumps and her eyes close.

Madge wakes the next day with the sun streaming in through her window into her eyes. Wincing, she climbs out of bed and runs to draw her curtains. That's when she realises she's in her pyjamas when she has no recollection of going to bed the night before. Trying not to think too much of it, she collapses back onto her bed and tries to sleep again.

She is interrupted, however, a couple of minutes later, by Mrs Everdeen bursting through the door.

"I heard you wake up," she says, holding out a small piece of paper. "You were left this."

Madge takes the paper, eyes still half-closed and mumbles, "What happened?"

"You were found by Effie on your back porch," Mrs Everdeen explains. "Passed out. I took you up to bed."

"Thank you," Madge said. "I just... the heat was too much for me."

Mrs Everdeen nods and exits the room. Madge looks down at the note.

_Sorry_, it says, and, _Thank You_.

She knows who it's from immediately, and feels a little sad that she'll never see him again.

**A/N: Did you like it? If so, I have a sequel planned for it, which will be a little longer (spanning Catching Fire and Mockingjay) so if anyone wants it, tell me in the Comments. Thanks for sticking with me thus far!**


End file.
